Chapter Text
Turns out, falling in love at first sight wasn’t the world-stopping, heart pounding tropey bullshit the media has been feeding the people.
What exactly happened: Sanemi was doing his job as an event photographer— he shot beautiful spots around the venue, he shot the extravagant floral decor, he shot the snobby rich guests (wished he could do that in a different way), and then, just by chance, his camera caught the figure of a man standing ways away from the crowd.
The fuck he doing over there?
Sanemi peered through the lens, and zoomed in to study the man’s profile.
Then suddenly, he’s a poet.
Because the first thing he thought of was the beauty of a calm sea.
Here’s where it goes cliche: when you fall at first sight, you feel the pull.
Sanemi kept shifting his gaze from the man’s striking blue eyes to the way his face carried the solemn expression and realized that yes, he couldn’t have had described him any more perfectly.
In contrast to his messy raven head sticking out like a pine tree, the well-tailored suit he wore was crisp, clean and proper. It was a burgundy tuxedo over a waistcoat of the same color. Underneath was a black shirt topped with a white bow tie.
He had both his hands hidden in his pockets as he stoically observed the audience from the distance.
At this angle, Sanemi could see an upturned nose and a pair of small lips which he caught just in time as it slightly quirked into a slight smile when the venue’s doors opened and then the bride, his client herself, Tsutako Tomioka came into view.
Sanemi could flip the dictionary over and over and he still wouldn’t be able to find something that was synonymous with beautiful because holy shit, the man was truly one but he couldn’t just pack every adjective he could think of into a single, overused term.
Somehow, the most beautiful word to exist was still lacking.
If this was a movie, Sanemi and the mysterious man would’ve locked eyes and then the rest of the world will fall apart.
But no, the one-sided spell broke when he realized that the man had only eyes for Tsutako.
And that’s how Sanemi experienced the horseshit they call ‘love at first sight’. The world didn’t stop, he was instantly on the move to do what he was paid to do. His heart didn’t start hammering in his chest. It felt weighted, just a little, at the disappointment that he had to quell the stupid fantasies taking root in his dumbass brain.
Well, it was fun while it lasted.
“I have an idea on how you could gain more followers.” Genya unashamedly barges inside Sanemi’s studio and he wasn’t surprised anymore to his big brother staring longingly at his desktop. It’s been going on for weeks. “Well, it’s more like Mui’s idea.”
Sanemi grumbles without even taking his eyes off the screen. “Don’t wanna hear it.” Genya gets himself a boyfriend it has to be a troublesome little gremlin.
“So, it’s like this,” Genya doesn’t get the fucking hint. “you post his picture in social media with the caption asking if anyone have fallen in love with a client or something and then you act all sad boy because you can’t, because you have to stay professional.”
That was oddly specific, how could that Tokitou kid come up with exact shit? “Genya...” Sanemi stares dumbly at his younger brother like he stuck a bouncing dildo on his forehead. “No, I’m not doing it for clout, what in the name of fuck?!”
“It’s perfect! Mui said that bad publicity is still publicity. Maybe it will go trending and people will search him for you. Your page will get more engagements! Of course we’re gonna censor the eyes—” Genya presses on quickly as if that was the problem and not the glaring fact that Sanemi would look like a creep. “of this uh, man...why do we keep calling him ‘man’, you should give him a nickname or something.”
Finally, a subject to take the conversation off whatever dumb shit Tokitou cooked up. Like, he appreciated the concern and all (Genya must’ve blabbed about his lack of clients.) but he’d rather search himself and go job hunting than become the next internet meme.
Sanemi couldn’t help the smile that crawled up his face. Genya had raised a good point and he was itching to tell someone for so long.
“Actually, I have a name for him. Mizu.” His eyes go soft at the memory of those pair of deep blue. Seeing those behind the screen couldn’t just compare. The smile on his lips part to let out a dreamy sigh. “Because see those eyes of his? When I stare at them, I feel like drowning, but in a good way.”
It was Genya’s turn to cringe. His face twists into a scowl because never in his life did he picture his brash and loud aniki talking like a romance fanfic.
“More like, Mizu me with that bullshit. What the fuck, Nemi? That’s even cornier when you promised Kanae-san the moon and the stars.”
The hand on Sanemi’s desk instantly clenches into a fist. Angry veins start popping out along his massive arm. It quivers, like it’s itching to land on the nearest solid object available which was his desktop with a picture of Mizu looking so lovely and far away.
Genya’s stupid potato face was the next best option.
“What are you going to offer Mizu-san? Lemme guess, Uranus?”
And then, he turns and runs away.
“GET YOUR GAY ASS OUT OF HERE, TITTY HEAD!” Sanemi quickly crosses the distance between them, his leg doing most of the catching up as his foot comes in contact with his little brother’s said gay ass.
The kick sends Genya literally flying out of the studio which turns his nasty goblin laugh into a panicked yell. The idiot steps on Koto’s toy truck, causing him to slip forward and crash on a wall. Rest in peace. Sanemi busts his heart open to his brother and he makes fun of him?
“I’m sorry, I’m just worried about your Bi Ass, your Lordship, sir.” Genya peeps from behind the wall. “You’re so down bad for this guy, it’s been weeks, Nemi!”
Sanemi isn’t going to dignify that with an answer so he deflects. "Don’t you have some dumbass lunch date with Tokitou in fifteen?” He grits the words ‘lunch date’ out like it was physically pulling him apart.
“Yes!” Genya starts flipping like a fish out of water. “After that, we’re going to see a movie and go to a Manga Cafe!”
“Don’t care, didn’t ask, use protection.” Sanemi lazily waves a hand to dismiss him. Genya didn’t care that he didn’t care, he was still yapping about it by the time he’s in the bathroom.
Stupid younger brother getting more action than him.
Well, guess what, he could go on a date too. He could ring up one of his past flings or find someone decent enough in some shitty app. In fact, he’d do that right now!
See? Sanemi starts scrolling his phonebook, contemplating who to ask out among his ten contacts: four exes, while six of them being his mother, Genya, three clients who ghosted him, and the guy from Uber Eats who took a sneaky bite out of his burger once so he had him reported.
Right, no problem. There’s still Tinder, Grindr and OkCupid.
Goodness, hundreds of people and none of them has a resting bitch face, black bird nest of a head, and icy blue eyes—Sanemi freezes, and sighs. Pulling his hairs out, he drops to the floor pathetically.
Fuck, he’s so alone.
He’s alone and still thinking about someone he encountered once. Actually, it wasn’t even an encounter. The guy had no idea he existed at all, or that since then, Sanemi had been staring at that single photo he captured on a whim for disturbingly long periods of time.
What he felt was too shallow and creepy to be called ‘love’. Hah. The concept of love at first sight was fucking stupid anyway, it was only designed to sell shit to gullible people.
Intrigued. He considers that and more like, captivated, entranced, curious...
Maybe even, a crush.
Somehow, that sounds even more stupid. He is twenty one and built like a tank.
“Huh?” Genya finally walks out of the shower, and his head tilts in confusion. Why is his brother doing the duck, cover and hold position? “Was there an earthquake, Nemi?”
Sanemi doesn’t answer but hopes that the ground would really open up to swallow him whole.
Maybe instead of finding the right name for his feelings, he finds himself a stable job first.